Vent re: Dumbo and adult only riders

[livndisney]

We were there at rope drop, believe me. It still took 4 cycles to get on the ride and I saw plenty of single riders. Big ones.

And each and every one of them bought a ticket and had just as much right to ride the ride as you did.

 

[glitterkittyy]

you mean MICKEY is not real?

Yes he is. I have an autograph to prove it!

 

[amyhughes]

The only issue I would have with this is safety. My child is a bit of a daredevil. I could see him climbing out of the safety harness. Granted he is 3.5, but since this ride caters to younger children and climbs to that height, this would be my only concern. With a parent sitting there minding their child, there is less likely going to be a traumatic and possibly fatal accident.

 

[TDC Nala]

Are we talking about families of 3 where one parent rides with the child and the other rides behind the child or adults that ride with no children?

Either way, I don't have a problem with anyone who wants to choosing to wait in the long freakin line to ride the thing.

 

[Traci35]

I guess it is a good thing, in the grand scheme of things, that your opinion matters only to you and has no bearing on anything Disney!

Characters meals... cost a fortune, and you know what... if I want to pay a fortune to dine at CRT (or use two DDP credits to do so) that is my perogative. I don't have to explain it to you, or anyone for that fact!

WDW & DL are open to people of all ages, to enjoy in the manner they see fit, AND to the fullest extent possible!

Your opinion, while you are entitled to it, doesn't mean "jack diddly" and it is definately a minority opinion, as nearly all that post disagree totally with you!

Your right! You paid for it and you are entitled!!!! Why should any adult have to show any compassion or kindness to any little child waiting in line to ride Dumbo??? Make them wait!!! I t is your vacation too!! You paid more and darn it is your right to ride in a flying elephant all by yourself!!!!!!

 

[MNWDWMANIAC]

This isn't about my child, per se. We get to the park at opening and have very little wait. It's about common courtesy and thinking of others. Yes, i'm one of those rare people who think of OTHER people's children, not just mine.

You could say the same about holding a door open for someone or giving up your seat on a bus for elderly, small child, etc.

So many people say that Disney makes them feel like a kid again. Well, let's not revert back so far that we forget common courtesy and empathy. And waiting in 100 degree heat for a ride is not a life lesson.

The suggestion that we reserve Dumbo for the small ones is just that -- a suggestion. If no one wants to go along with it because they must - ride - dumbo, of course that is their prerogative. No need for anyone to get defensive. I see so much defensiveness on these replies.

This is the second time I've seen you try and compare someone not going on a ride at WDW to "holding a door open for someone or giving up your seat on a bus for elderly, small child etc." So in the reverse does that mean that someone who chooses to ride Dumbo without a kid is as rude as someone who isn't willing to do any of those things?

I always hold a door open for someone or give up my seat on a bus for elderly people or parents with kids or kids who need to sleep on the way back to the hotel. I even have my children learning to think of others when it comes to these situations. But you can bet I'm going to enjoy riding each and ever single ride I want too at Disney every single time. One thing has nothing to do with the other.

I think thats where a lot of the reactions are coming from to your posts. Just because someone wants to ride Dumbo without a child doesn't mean they are rude people. I believe the defensiveness that is being felt in the replies also comes from this idea. People who are going to WDW shouldn't need to explain or have a valid reason for anyone to ride rides. It doesn't matter if it's Dumbo or TOT. If someone has paid admission to enjoy a vacation in a place as magical as WDW they shouldn't need to worry about such things. Kids or no kids, Disney is for EVERYONE.

Halloween parties could be considered geared for children. They sell out in some cases. Does that mean we shouldn't buy tickets if we don't have kids just so there are more tickets for those families that have kids just in case they will sell out?

Examples like this can go on and on all day long. Bottom line is that if Walt wanted Dumbo to be for children only, then I would expect to see a sign on the ride explaining that only children and those with children were allowed to ride.

Fantasyland is just that, another wonderful land in the MAGIC KINGDOM.....I don't recall it ever being called KIDS land.

But thank you for the suggestion.

 

[mickeymyfavorite]

Yes he is. I have an autograph to prove it!

 

[mefordis]

I guess it is a good thing, in the grand scheme of things, that your opinion matters only to you and has no bearing on anything Disney!

Characters meals... cost a fortune, and you know what... if I want to pay a fortune to dine at CRT (or use two DDP credits to do so) that is my perogative. I don't have to explain it to you, or anyone for that fact!

WDW & DL are open to people of all ages, to enjoy in the manner they see fit, AND to the fullest extent possible!

Your opinion, while you are entitled to it, doesn't mean "jack diddly" and it is definately a minority opinion, as nearly all that post disagree totally with you!

Don't be so sure my opinion doesn't count. Disney reads these boards and even though more people who disagree with me are vocal on this board, don't think I'm the only one who has this opinion.

Also, keep in mind that at Universal there is a really fun looking ride based on Jurassic Park in which you had to have one child and one adult, and they wouldn't let any adults on without children and vice versa. Anything can change. I can picture the throngs of adults waiting by asking to borrow a kid so they can ride Dumbo! LOL!

 

[Sir Ron]

It's funny, mefordis, that only people who agree with you are the ones you call levelheaded. I personally find your insinuation insulting that any adult who rides Dumbo ahead of a child is being selfish. There is a difference in being rude to a child. Heck, Bethy and I had some kid basically climb in our lap to try and watch Spectromagic. We let him sit in front of us. That's our prerogative. This concept that demands that everybody yield to others is a part of this entitlement problem we have. There's a difference between an adult jumping in front of a kid to do something and an adult waiting in line and kids come in behind him or her.

I honestly feel bad for a lot of kids at Disney when I see what a poor job their parents do at planning the trip. That's when we either try and offer advice (fastpasses for some rides) or we try and do something nice for a kid. You have no idea how bad we feel for kids whose parents make them wait in line for 2 hours for Splash Mountain. You contradicted yourself earlier. Is it a treasured ride or is it a carnival ride? If it's a carnival ride, then they can ride it anywhere else. It's treasured because adults and kids like it. Again, no child truly has to wait long if a parent knows how to plan a trip. It honestly isn't that hard.

 

[Chattyaholic]

I've never ridden Dumbo at WDW, just never wanted to. But if there is no height/weight restriction against adults riding it, then no one has the right to tell them not to.

And as far as the characters go, I had my picture taken with Winnie-the-Pooh when I was 14 and made my very first trip to Disneyworld back in 1973. In 2001 DH and I were at Animal Kingdom and I was able to have my picture taken with Winnie-the-Pooh again, as a 44-year-old adult, and it was just as special then as it was when I was 14. Just because I didn't have a child with me, I shouldn't have my picture taken with Pooh? No other park visitor has the right to tell me I can't. If it was "just for children" they wouldn't allow adults to get in line and have their picture taken.

 

[scanfield]

Ice cream is obviously a children's food, so adults shouldn't get in line to buy ice cream at disney world.

 

[savannahjean85]

My Mom and I LOVE Dumbo, we're talking a 22 year old and a 53 year old (shhh, don't tell her I posted that). Two grown women wearing Mickey Mouse ears and giggling on Dumbo celebrating my birthday is one of my all-time favorite Disney memories.............and I was an adult to experience it. I refuse to let anyone make me feel bad for enjoying all that Disney has to offer. My time with my Mom is precious to me. Am I okay to ride with my Mom even though I'm grown-up now? She still thinks of me as her baby anyhow.

CheshireSmile, I totally agree with you. I am 22, but I am still my mom's child.

My parents could not afford to take us as a family when I was younger. My first trip was when I was 13 going one day to MK with a friend. From that moment I was hooked, I gained this wonderful giddy feeling inside of me. Sadly my father passed when I was 17, but I still have my mom and I plan on taking her and my sisters to WDW next year and riding everything. I don't care if my physical body is an adult, I am a child at heart.

My advice for you:
Seriously stop looking around and trying to find all the things in disney that upset you and just enjoy every second you have with your child!


Also I am not "taking" anything away from a child. They still will get to ride the ride and/or meet the character.

 

[TDC Nala]

I wouldn't mind going to WDW just to sit in the Adventurers Club at night (which I guess everybody will agree is an adult venue) but I need to do something during the day. So I will take this opportunity to apologize for taking up a space in the park and even riding a few things that were probably meant for children.

I haven't been to a character meal in a long time, but if they had one with great food I'd sure go.

 

[tinkamom]

Yes. I'm really going to get blasted for this one, but I think the character meals should be reserved for the little ones as well.

Sorry. I guess I just don't get it. Before I had a child I took my husband to WDW because he had never been and I was in Orlando on business, so he met me there. We went to the GF reservation desk and asked about dinner reservations and the cm was, like, "It's your lucky day! A table is available for CRT." We were like, "okay." We ended up walking up to CRT and looking at each other like, "Now, why do we want to eat here?" We skipped the reservation. This was in 2002 and credit cards weren't necessary. We went to O'Hana instead (they had the pineapple and caramel then, I remember. Not to get off topic).

I guess I only really am into Disney because of my child. Once she becomes a teen it will probably be Universal all the way.

Wasn't breakfast the only character meal at CRT back in 2002? I remember having a very nice non-character lunch in the castle. In fact I was heartbroken when they changed over to all character meals because I really enjoyed dining in the castle!

 

[savannahjean85]

Don't be so sure my opinion doesn't count. Disney reads these boards and even though more people who disagree with me are vocal on this board, don't think I'm the only one who has this opinion.

Also, keep in mind that at Universal there is a really fun looking ride based on Jurassic Park in which you had to have one child and one adult, and they wouldn't let any adults on without children and vice versa. Anything can change. I can picture the throngs of adults waiting by asking to borrow a kid so they can ride Dumbo! LOL!

Yeah and that is prob. why Universal sits at # 6 on the list of top attended theme parks...behind after all the Disney parks.


1.The Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Fla., 14 million, flat.
2.Disneyland, Anaheim, Calif., 12.7 million, flat.
3.Epcot at Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Fla., 8.6 million, up 4 percent.
4.Disney-MGM Studios at Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Fla., 7.8 million, down 2 percent.
5.Disney's Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Fla., 7.3 million, flat.
6.Universal Studios at Universal Orlando, 6.8 million, flat

 

[Bethy Lou]

As a pregnant woman I take serious offense to the OP's opinion. Because of my condition the only rides I can get on are the ones that do not have height restrictions. I love Dumbo and do not feel the need to validate that. I love many of the rides that do not have height restrictions. I do not think it is fair that just because I am an adult I have to give up on the only rides I myself can ride too. Some people might say that I should not bother going to Disney World if I am pregnant, and I have to totally disagree. The parks are not about the rides, but the experiences and if your child cannot have a good time because they waited in a line for ten minutes instead of five, then maybe the real point of the trip is lost to begin with.

 

[La2kw]

Okay, I know I am going to get a lot of flak about this, but I am posting anyway.

Dumbo is a ride that small children LOVE. AND it has one of the longest lines of all rides in the MK (usually). Small children (toddlers, preschoolers) have very few rides just for them that we KNOW will not scare them like dark rides, etc. I really hate seeing adults taking up a Dumbo seat without a kid. I mean, come on. Give this one to the little kids, okay? They have a hard time waiting in line as it is.

Thank you

So you are suggesting that adults can't ride Dumbo because you don't want your child to wait his turn? Your kid is not more important than any of the other thousands of people at Disney on any given day. Patience is something that all children need to learn. They should be able to learn how to wait and not expect everything handed to them whenever they want it.

I personally would like to see the character meals abolished. Disney has turned so many of the unique restaurants into character meals. CRT, Akershus, Crystal Palace, Garden Grill, Hollywood and Vine, etc. I hate that these restaurants are now all character meals, all the time. They could at least compromise like they used to and have one non-character meal a day like LTT, Cape May, and Tusker House do.

 

[dreamergirl78]

That's good.
Does it REALLY matter to you if an older kid or adult is riding Dumbo?

I guess the reverse could be said for those of us with older kids or who do solo or adults only trips. Why should I have to listen to crying babies, toddler meltdowns, deal with stroller rage etc etc....??? Why? Because Disney is for EVERYONE! They have just as much right to be there as we do and visa versa.

Last year I took my son (then 9 at the time) back to WDW. He had never been on Dumbo and on our last day at the MK asked if he could please try it just once. I, of course, said sure. We waited about 15 minutes and it was so fun! We laughed and smiled the whole time. That's really what Disney is all about, to me anyway. Just enjoying the moment, having fun, making memories and letting your hair down for a few days without the stresses of the "real world" and if that really bothers you I feel kind of sad for you.

 

[KPeveler]

ok, i am 23, and i LOVE kids rides. i have a genetic defect and some kind of neuro-degenerative disorder. i used to be able to walk 15 hours at disney, and now i need a wheelchair just to get from the monorail to the front gate. my life can STINK at times, but i live each day at a time, and i think i do pretty good for myself (i am getting my masters right now - 2 semesters to go!). disney is my haven. disney is where i forget that i am sick, and we don't know why. disney is where i forget that someday i may not be able to leave my wheelchair at all (by the way, dumbo does NOT have a wheelchair car).

I go on rides and i get my picture taken with characters, and i have a blast! i never feel like i do in disney. i watch disney travel DVDs just to be able to pretend i am there.

i AM a kid. i refuse to ever stop being a kid. every day may be the LAST time i am able to do something, so i am going to do everything i can, EVERY day. i refuse to ever stop being a kid. so if disney is just for kids, i am there!!

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Personally I can't stand the whole "why should my child have to wait" thing. Then people wonder why kids today grow up and only care about themselves.